Practical Methods for Meeting Remediation Goals at Hazardous Waste Sites

Risk-based cleanup goals or preliminary remediation goals (PRGs) are established at hazardous waste sites when contaminant concentrations in air, soil, surface water, or groundwater exceed specified acceptable risk levels. When derived in accordance with the Environmental Protection Agency's risk assessment guidance, the PRG is intended to represent the average contaminant concentration within an exposure unit area that is left on the site following remediation. The PRG, however, frequently has been used inconsistently at Superfund sites with a number of remediation decisions using the PRG as a not-to-exceed concentration (NTEC). Such misapplications could result in overly conservative and unnecessarily costly remedial actions. The PRG should be applied in remedial actions in the same manner in which it was generated. Statistical methods, such as Bower's Confidence Response Goal, and mathematical methods such as "iterative removal of hot spots," are available to assist in the development of NTECs that ensure the average postremediation contaminant concentration is at or below the PRG. These NTECs can provide the risk manager with a more practical cleanup goal. In addition, an acute PRG can be developed to ensure that contaminant concentrations left on-site following remediation are not so high as to pose an acute or short-term health risk if excessive exposure to small areas of the site should occur. A case study demonstrates cost savings of five to ten times associated with the more scientifically sound use of the PRG as a postremediation site average, and development of a separate NTEC and acute PRG based on the methods referenced in this article.     

Social support as a mediator of revictimization of low-income African American women

Mediating effects of social support on the link between childhood maltreatment and adult intimate partner violence (IPV) were explored in a sample of 362 low-income, African American women. We examined relations between childhood maltreatment experiences (total maltreatment, sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse, emotional neglect, and physical neglect) and adult maltreatment (physical IPV and nonphysical IPV). Results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed small, but significant, effects. Further, social support mediated revictimization. Social support fully mediated relations in which the form of childhood maltreatment was different than the form of adult IPV (e.g., the relation between childhood sexual abuse and adult nonphysical IPV), but only partially mediated the relations in which the form of childhood maltreatment was similar to adult IPV (e.g., the relation between childhood emotional abuse and adult nonphysical IPV). Implications for clinical interventions for women with intimate partner violence experiences are discussed.     

Why Study Risk Perception?

Studies of risk perception examine the opinions people express when they are asked, in various ways, to characterize and evaluate hazardous activities and technologies. This research aims to aid risk analysis and societal decision making by (i) improving methods for eliciting opinions about risk, (ii) providing a basis for understanding and anticipating public responses to hazards, and (iii) improving the communication of risk information among laypeople, technical experts, and policy makers.     

Drinking Game Participation Among Undergraduate Students Attending National Alcohol Screening Day

Abstract

Objectives, Participants, Methods: Drinking game participation has increased in popularity among college students and is associated with increased alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems. The current study investigated drinking game participation among 133 undergraduates attending National Alcohol Screening Day (NASD) in April of 2007. Results: A large percentage of the sample reported lifetime (77%) and recent (52%) drinking game participation. Males were more likely to report recent participation and reported higher levels of consumption while playing drinking games. Drinking game participants were more likely to experience a range of alcohol-related problems, and the relationship between drinking game participation and alcohol-related problems was mediated by weekly alcohol consumption. Conclusions: These results suggest that drinking game participation is a risk factor for elevated levels of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems. Programs should be developed to educate students about the risks of drinking game participation, and prevention programs like NASD should address drinking games.     

The Significance of Community to Business Social Responsibility1

Abstract In this paper, I focus attention on one aspect of business social responsibility, the relationship between businesses and community. Specifically, I explore the impact of business operators' perceptions about norms of collective action in their communities on the level of their support for and commitment to their communities. This relationship was elaborated using data from interviews with 1,008 business owners and managers randomly selected from 30 small Iowa communities (500 to 10,000 in population). Findings indicate the majority of small business operators report that they are committed to and provide support for their community. Also, it is concluded that operators' educational levels and lengths of residence, the success and age of their businesses, and their perceptions of community levels of collective action are significantly associated with levels of business social responsibility.     

Combining Occurrence and Toxicity Information to Identify Priorities for Drinking-Water Mixture Research

Characterizing all possible chemical mixtures in drinking water is a potentially overwhelming project, and the task of assessing each mixture's net toxicity even more daunting. We propose that analyzing occurrence information on mixtures in drinking water may help to narrow the priorities and inform the approaches taken by researchers in mixture toxicology. To illustrate the utility of environmental data for refining the mixtures problem, we use a recent compilation of national ground-water-quality data to examine proposed U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) models of noncancer mixture toxicity. We use data on the occurrence of binary and ternary mixtures of arsenic, cadmium, and manganese to parameterize an additive model and compute hazard index scores for each drinking-water source in the data set. We also use partially parameterized interaction models to perform a bounding analysis estimating the interaction potential of several binary and ternary mixtures for which the toxicological literature is limited. From these results, we estimate a relative value of additional toxicological information for each mixture. For example, we find that according to the U.S. EPA's interaction model, the levels of arsenic and cadmium found in U.S. drinking water are unlikely to have synergistic cardiovascular effects, but the same mixture's potential for synergistic neurological effects merits further study. Similar analysis could in future be used to prioritize toxicological studies based on their potential to reduce scientific and regulatory uncertainty. Environmental data may also provide a means to explore the implications of alternative risk models for the toxicity and interaction of complex mixtures.     

Telling a Good Story: Using Narratives in Vocational Rehabilitation With Veterans

Because of the high chronicity of work-related problems in a Veterans Administration Medical Center population, many of the traditional methods of career assessment, counseling, and placement have proven ineffectual. In this article the authors detail the development of an intervention based on narrative or storytelling principles. They describe efforts to introduce this model to patients as well as to relate patients' stories to vocational outcomes. The usefulness of stories as an organizing principle for counselors and clients is discussed, and suggestions are offered for further uses of storytelling interventions.